Tamarod launches 30 June Front, proposes post-Morsi roadmap

The revolutionary Rebel movement, aiming to oust President Morsi via a mass petition, proposes a six-month transitional roadmap where executive powers are assigned to an independent technocratic premier

Opposition political and revolutionary forces, led by the "Rebel" (Tamarod) campaign, launched Wednesday the 30 June Front, a coordinating political body to organise planned protests Sunday, as well the political demands of the protests.

At a press conference for the launch, the Front also proposed a roadmap for a transitional period in Egypt to follow President Morsi's departure.

“We announce the 30 June Front as an initiative from Tamarod to represent Egyptians who refuse Muslim Brotherhood rule and to share with the great Egyptian people their political vision in order to avoid the mistakes of the past period and to continue on the path of January 25 Revolution,” said Mohamed Abdel Aziz, co-founder of Tamarod, in the presence of many famous revolutionary and political figures in Egypt.

Among the attendees were law professor and analyst Hossam Eissa, spokesman of the National Salvation Front Khaled Daoud, Islamic preacher Mazhar Shaheen and activists Klahed Teliema and Esraa Abdel Fattah.

The political roadmap proposed by the Front includes full authorities afforded for an independent prime minister who represents the January 25 Revolution on the condition that he does not run in the first upcoming presidential or parliamentary elections.

“The independent prime minister will head a technocratic government whose main mission is to put together an urgent economic plan to save the Egyptian economy and to expand social justice policies,” said Abdel Aziz.

He also hinted that the premier would not be from drawn from among well known politicans.

“The head of the High Constitutional Court would be assigned the duties of the president according to protocol when all executive powers are assigned to the prime minister in a six-month transitional period that ends by presidential elections judicially supervised and monitored internationally, followed by parliamentary elections,” the Tamarod co-founder added.

Dissolving the Shura Council, suspending the current constitution and drafting a new constitution are steps in the roadmap proposed by the newly founded Front.

According to the proposed roadmap, the prime minister will call on the National Defence Council to do its job in keeping with the national security needs of the country.

Abdel Aziz also revealed details about the internal structure of the new Front. “There are 10 committees operating in the 30 June Front: the day-to-day work committee, the e-work committee, the public work committee, the legal work committee, the foreign media communication committee, the communication with political powers and figures committee, the logistics committee, the fieldwork committee, the governorates committee and the labour unions committee."

The Front will name a general secretary from among its members and choose two or three spokespersons to liaise with the media.

The activists and speakers of Tamarod stressed that the 30 June Front does not represent all revolutionaries in Egypt, yet it hopes that it will represent all Egyptians on 30 June.

“There will be no flags or banners except Egyptian flags in the protests as well the photos of Egypt’s martyrs, starting with the martyrs of the January 25 Revolution,” leaders said in the conference.

Among speakers at the event were activist Dr Ahmed Harara and Mrs Samia Gindy, the mother of late activist Mohamed Gindy. “It is time to live in a democratic state where the police, army, presidency, judiciary and parliament serve the people, as people pay their salaries from their taxes,” said Harara, who lost both his eyes in 2011 during protest clashes.

In an emotional speech, Samia Gindy accused authorities of torturing her son to death, asking the youth to forget their differences and return to Tahrir Square in order to restore hope and dignity to Egypt.

“I wish that I had joined my son when he used to protest in Tahrir Square, but now I am going to Tahrir Square. I call on parents to take their sons and restore the rights of Egyptians,” the grieving mother said.

Regarding the anticipated presidential speech this evening, The Front called on the Egyptian people to listen to the speech in Tahrir Square. It is expected that the president's speech will aired be at 9.30pm. Groups of revolutionary and opposition forces have already started to set up a stage with a screen in the square.

“We do not think there will be new concessions, and already it is too as late for negotiations as we are in the new wave of the January 25 Revolution. We want to achieve the goals of bread, freedom and democracy,” said Khaled Dawood, National Salvation Front spokesperson.

“This is the initial plan, but it may change as circumstances change,” said Hossam Eissa, constitutional law professor and politician, commenting on the roadmap announced by the Front.

Tamarod also called on the Egyptian people to join its planned mass protests across Egypt on Friday, 28 June — titled "Leave" — against President Mohamed Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood.

Islamist powers led by the Muslim Brotherhood are planning mass demonstrations in solidarity with Morsi and his legitimacy as president also on 28 June.

The Tamarod movement announced some of locations on the 30 June rallies map, including four marches from Heliopolis and Ain Shams to the presidential palace, and another four rallies from Cairo and Giza to Tahrir Square.

The press conference of Tamarod held Wednesday afternoon is the fourth to be held by the movement aiming to oust President Morsi by popular petition. At an upcoming press conference Saturday, the campaign will announce the final number of signatures it has collected from citizens calling for the departure of the president. It will announce the location of all other rallies planned for 30 June also on Saturday.

Tamarod is a signature drive launched in May with the intention of "withdrawing confidence" from Morsi by collecting 15 million citizen endorsements, exceeding the number of votes Morsi amassed in the runoffs of the 2012 presidential elections (13.2 million).

The campaign recently announced it had amassed the targeted number of endorsements.

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Please Wait

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Jon

26-06-2013 09:58pm

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Treason

The president was instated through the ballot box. The constitution was approved by a vast majority of those who voted. Who are these "Tamarods" to overrule the Egyptian people?
They can have their policies through the ballot box.
They can get the president they want through the ballot box.
But I assume they find party work tedious. It's much more fun to talk to the media or issue propaganda within their own small flock.
If the "Tamarods" really got their will, the country would dive directly into chaos. The Islamist majority, who rightfully would feel the power was illegitimately taken from them, would revolt. The army might try to take power again.
I think some naive liberals think the process could be restarted: We could go back to a transitional, military regime, then write a new constitution and rerun the referendums and elections, all within a couple of years. This is dangerously naive. The best outcome would be civil war, Iraqi style. The worst 30 more years of military dictatorship. Most likely both.
In many countries, openly scheming to topple a legally elected head of state outside the constitutional recipe, would amount to high treason. It is a tribute to president Morsi's great statesmanship and personal faith in free speech and democracy that he tolerates this right before his eyes.